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God's Beautiful Wrath
The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. — John 3:35-36
So a lot of pastors shy away from speaking about God's wrath. And they shy away from it for three reasons. First, they feel it's condemning to talk about God's wrath. Second, they have heard or experienced it talked about in a mean-spirited manner. Or third, they find it politically incorrect to speak of. But here is the problem with not talking about it. When we don't, we fail to fully communicate the beauty of God's holiness or the extent of his sacrificial love. Therefore things like the person of Christ, the cross, and the resurrection are significantly devalued.
So here is the nature of God's wrath. When God is being wrathful, he is not losing control. It's his response to human and spiritual rebellion. And the problem with human rebellion is that all mankind is rebellious. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Even the intentions of our hearts are for nothing but evil. This means the doctrines of the wrath of God, the judgment of God, and eternal punishment are realities. What this should do is draw us to something or someone holy. And it should increase our desire for freedom from sin and to be loved by God.
And that's what happens in this text. John explains that God's wrath against all sin and disobedience should draw us to Jesus. Jesus is our divine hope. In him is found salvation from two things: spiritual death and eternal punishment. And by believing in him, you can have spiritual life and everlasting joy.
But you can only have this if you believe two things: First, that you are sinful and deserve God's wrath. Second, that Jesus is God's son sacrificed for you, paying the penalty for your sin, so that through him you might know the vast love of God and his holiness.
And guess what? You can do that right now. You can receive his love for all your sin and live free from his wrath by believing in Jesus.
ASK THIS: Are you ready to remove God's wrath?
DO THIS: Believe in Jesus. He is the greatness of God's love.
PRAY THIS: God, I believe you sent your Son to pay the penalty for my sin so I might know your holiness. Save me from your wrath today.
PLAY THIS: We Believe.
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Beautifully written Vince. I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard a message from the pulpit about God’s wrath. And we should. “God’s wrath” has gotten a bum rap over the years. He loves us so much to see us dissing Him, dissing others. Our hearts are indeed evil.
Maybe we need more of His wrath. I need to embrace God, embrace the cross, daily.
24-7
“The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked. His wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else but to be cast into the fire.” Jonathan Edwards
I remember reading this Jonathan Edwards passage from my sophomore English Lit class and it scared the sh– out of me! That’s why I still remember it ’til this day. I love that God loves me but sometimes, many times, I need the wrath of God’s presence in view, maybe not as strong as the puritan minister above but at least a reminder that we are accountable for our sins.
Thank you. Not enough of God’s wrath is preached from our pulpits. The focus always seems to be on God’s love. I heard it once said that you cannot share the Gospel without sharing about heaven and hell because that is the entire Gospel. I also found that God’s wrath is mentioned more times in the scriptures than His love. Leaders do an injustice when they do not teach on the wrath of God.
Thank you for this. Too often I believe we focus only on God’s love and do not address God’s holiness and his hatred of our sins. If God failed to judge sin (evil) he would cease to be good (just). God made the way for Grace and Judgment to exist side by side for us in Jesus.